Pencil.



No. 638,923. Patented Dec. I2, i899.

v A. D. GRVER.

PENCIL.

(Application led Fab 27, 189.)t

(No Model.)

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PATENT ruina.

ALBERT D. GROVER, OF MALDEN, MASSACHUSETTS.

PENCIL.

SPECIFICATION forming part' of Letters Patent No. 638,923, datedDeceinber 12, 1899.V Application filed February 27, 1896. Serial No.581,042. (No model.)

To ctZZ whom, t may concern.-

Be it known that l, ALBERT D. GROVER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Malden, in the county of Middlesex and State ofMassachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Pencils, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings,forming a part of thisspecification, in explaining its nature.

My invention relates to an improvement in pencils, which comprises a"wooden sheath, cylinder, or stem, having a central cavity, one end ofwhich is conical and provided with cross-recesses or saW-kerfs, whichdivide it into aseries of jaws, and has a conical tip or ferrule of ashape to force the outer or small ends of the jaw together toward eachother and upon the lead. The tip or ferrule is preferably so shaped asto be adjustable upon the said tapering end of the pencil-sheath, and itpreferably also has means by which it may be secured on the conical end.The wooden jaws of the wooden sheath are thus adapted to be closed upona lead or other marking device and to be held closed thereon withsufficient stress to prevent the movement of the lead in the sheath.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a View in plan of a pencil havingthe features of my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal central sectionthereof. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal central section of the point endenlarged. Fig. t is a view in perspective showing the Wooden -sheath andits conical end. Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of the conical tip.Fig. 6 is a View in cross-section upon the dotted line 6 of Fig. 3. Fig7 is a View in crosssection upon the dotted line 7 7 of Fig. 3. Fig. Sis a view in plan, enlarged, representing means for holding the tip tothe pencil-sheath. Fig. 9 is a View in cross-section upon the dottedline 9 9 of Fig. 8. Fig. l0 represents another way of securing the tipto the wooden sheath. Fig. 1l is a cross-section upon the dotted'line 1ll1 of Fig. 10. Fig. l2 represents still another Way of securing themetal tip to the conical end of the sheath.

A is the wooden sheath. It is formed of any usual wood, and it has acentral cavity a, preferably extending from one end to the other of thesheath, although not necessarily so, and adapted to receive the lead B.The end a of the longitudinal cavity is closed in any desired way. Theopposite end of the cavity is adapted to be contracted in size by thesections d2 of the wooden sheath, which are pressed inwardly by means ofthe conical ferrule or tip C and held by itin this position. In order toaccomplish this, the end a3 of the wooden sheath or stem is made of theconical or tapered form which a sharpened pencil generally has, and inthis tapering end of the wooden sheath narrow recesses or saw-kerfs a4are cut, which extend from its apex or smaller end practically itsentire length and which are of a width to permit the divided sections atthe end to be closed inward toward each other and upon the pencil-lead Bnear its outer end. This closing of the sections d2 of the conical endof the wooden sheath or stem is produced by the conical ferrule or tipC, which preferably is of thin metal, but which may be of gutta-percha,paper, or any other suitable material and which preferably has a conicalcavity of a slightly-greater angle than the angle of the conical end ofthe wooden sheath a3. This is for the purpose ot enabling it to applythe greatest closing pressure upon the conical end at or near itssmaller or outer end, and it is also for the purpose of providing itwith a further longitudinal movement or adjustment upon the conical end,whereby it may be further lnoved or pressed thereon to secure acontinued closing pressure upon the conical end after it has first beenset or used to accommodate for such variations as may come in use andwear. This construction, somewhat exaggerated, is represented in Fig. 3.The endof the tip extends beyond the end of the conical section of thesheath and may act to coperate therewith in sustaining the point of thelead.

As a rule I prefer that the central tip be provided with means forattachment to the l pencil-wood other than that provided by frictionbetween an expansilole tip and the Wood.

In Fig. 8 I have represented the tip as provided with means for grippingthe pencil ends with a yielding adj-ustable grip, the re- IOO sult beingattained by providing the large end of the tip with a series ofgrasping-fingers d, which are closed sufficiently to be somewhat smallerthan the base of the conical section instead of larger, as representedin Fig. 3, and so as to hug the base rather tightly when forced thereon.This Will not interfere with its longitudinal adjustment.

In Fig. l0 the entire tip is represented as having a hugging property byhaving the longitudinal slit d extending from one end to the other, bymeans of which the tip is in eiect provided with spring jaws or holdersthroughout its length, which tend to close upon the conical end with anydesired yielding pressure and which permit the longitudinaladj ustmentof the tip upon the conical end.

In Fig. l2 I have represented the tip as secured to the pencil-wood byproviding it with a'short threaded section d2. This preferably is at itsenlarged end, and it screws upon the end of the pencil, preferablyforming its own thread therein as it is turned.

In use the lead is inserted by removing the tip sufficiently to permitit to be passed into the cavity, preferably from the conical end. Itspoint end is then adjusted to any desired position and the lead lockedto the conical end by pressing the conical tip upon the conical end withany desired stress.

The advantages of the invention arise from the simplicity and cheapnessof the construction as well as the providing of an otherwise ordinarypencil With a uniform length and with a iinished conical end of theusualY type of a sharpened pencil and means by which its length is nevervaried and its lead end constantly maintained Without removing any partof the Wood of the pencil.

While I have spoken of lead, I do not Wish to confine the invention tothe use of an ordinary lead, but may use any other kind of a marker.

Having thus fully described my invention,

-I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States- Ina pencil the case A having a conical end a3 provided with saw-kerts a4extending the entire length of the end a3 thereby forming the sectionsd2 and the conical ferrule C having an attaching inner end, as and forthe purposes described.

ALBERT D. GROVER.

In presence of-

